Skip to main contentAccessibility Statement

Suicide prevention support

Postvention protocol  for a suspected death by suicide

The standard protocol in the event of suspected death by suicide in a Northamptonshire school community (this should be the same if the event occurs during term time or holidays) can be found in the support package below.

The support package will help guide you through the six steps

Step 1 Notification

  • Educational establishments to notify Emergency Planning in the first instance of a suspected death by suicide in a school community
  • Call 07885 292851 to notify the North Northamptonshire Council Duty Emergency Planning Officer
  • Call 07442 691327 to notify the West Northamptonshire Council Duty Emergency Planning Officer
  • Please refrain from contacting further services/support (excluding emergency services) at this point and avoid sharing any personally identifiable information with others

Step 2 Critical incident support

  • The Duty Emergency Planning Officer will immediately contact the Educational Psychology Service to start Critical Incident Support. The Educational Psychology Service is not available 24/7 but the Emergency Planning Team has access to out of hour contacts who will be notified if required. The service runs during school holidays
  • The Northamptonshire Suicide Prevention Officer will be notified and will complete an escalation process with the aim of reducing the effect this has on others

Step 3 Breaking the news

  • It is important to confirm as much information as possible before informing a school community of the death
  • Be mindful that the cause of death may not have been confirmed as a suicide yet and that the family may not want the cause of death to be disclosed
  • For guidance on how to break the news to a school community, see the Breaking the News to the School Community section of the document
  • For guidance on how to deal with media, see the Managing Media section.

Step 4 Managing risk

  • Identifying those more vulnerable can help manage risk
  • The educational establishment should highlight vulnerable students and staff members to enable support from the Educational Psychology Service, using the Circles of Vulnerability Matrix, see the Managing Risk section in the document

Step 5 Signposting support

  • For support available following a suspected death by suicide, see the Postvention Service Directory in the document
  • For mental wellbeing services and support, see the Prevention Service Directory in the document
  • For guidance on supporting the school community, see the Supporting the School Community section in the document
  • For support available following a suspected death by suicide, please see the Postvention Service Directory in the document

Step 6 Longer term

  • For guidance on moving forwards following a critical incident in an educational establishment, see the Going Forwards section of the document

Last updated 06 March 2023